Submitted photo Representatives from Sen. Shelley Moore Capito's office, Woodlands Development and Lending, Philippi City Council and several banks were on-hand Monday for a ribbon cutting at the Woods-George building in Philippi.

PHILIPPI – The grand opening of a restored, historic 1901 building was celebrated with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Monday.

The Woods-George building has been renovated into affordable housing and commercial space.

Woodlands Development and Lending officials say the newly restored building, located at the corner of South Main and Mason Street, will provide “high-quality, affordable housing and a beautiful refurbished commercial space for Barbour County.”

“We do our best work, and we do our most work when we work hand in hand with community partners,” said Dave Clark of Woodlands, expressing his appreciation for the collaboration of board and staff members, as well as the support from U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., and the Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh.

The project was made possible by funding provided by Capito’s office, the Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh, the West Virginia Housing Development Fund, and the Governor’s Office.

“Strong local partners like the City of Philippi and Freedom Bank were critical to the success of this project and Woodlands hopes that the improvements contribute to ongoing and lasting growth and positive development for the Philippi community,” a Woodlands press release states.

Joining Woodlands to celebrate the occasion Monday were Todd Gunter, director of Economic Development for Capito’s office; John Bendel, director of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh; Philippi City Council members Tony Wilson, Cathy Corder, Amy Mick and Susie Cvechko; and local officials, project partners and community members.

“I want to be very clear that this is not the federal government’s money. This is not Sen. Capito’s money, but this is your money. And we work hard to ensure that we put it to work for you,” Gunter said during the ceremony.

Bendel emphasized the importance of preserving a community asset while creating meaningful opportunities for the residents of Philippi. He highlighted that access to safe housing can restore dignity and provide financial stability, underscoring the importance of continued investment in projects like this.

Terri Kittle of Freedom Bank talked about working together with Woodlands over a number of years to move forward projects like these. Freedom Bank helped enable the project funding through the Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh.

Woodlands Development and Lending works to “develop affordable housing, drive downtown development, increase community capacity, and provide affordable small business support and lending services to the communities in our service area,” the release states.

Woodlands Development and Lending is an Elkins-based Community Housing Development Organization (CHDO) and Financial Institution (CDFI) that serves Randolph, Barbour and Tucker counties.